New Mexico’s Susana Martinez the Future Of The GOP?

“You can’t really hate and get away with it in New Mexico,” said Antonio Maestas, a Democratic state representative from Albuquerque. “That’s why it was shocking when she got away with it in the primary.”

You shouldn’t be able to get away with hate anywhere. You shouldn’t be a demagogue. You should clearly state your intentions when you want to get elected into office.

I like that she opposes reviewing the 14th amendment, and I don’t necessarily disagree about police checking immigration status of suspects, provided they check EVERYONE’S status.

I don’t like her hints of demagoguery.

What else have you got GOP? Seems like all you have are potential demagogues and racists. Not that you’re much different from the Democrats in that respect.

But she is dodging the most volatile and important issue to the conservative base in the southwestern U.S.: immigration. While other Republican governors are racing to copy Arizona’s toughest-in-the-country immigration law, Martinez has expressed only tepid support for it. While Republicans in Washington want to reopen debate on birthright citizenship guaranteed by the 14th Amendment, Martinez opposes changing the amendment.

She insists that the Arizona law is a public safety issue and not a political one.

“Susana Martinez believes that states have every right to check the immigration status of someone that has been arrested of a crime,” campaign manager Ryan Cangiolisi told POLITICO.

But the Arizona law allows officers to detain and check the immigration status of people who haven’t been arrested — leaving the Martinez statement well short of an outright endorsement of the law.